Buyers were willing to dig deep to invest in these Poll Merino and Merino rams
It may have only been a small offering of rams again in this year's Rabobank WA Sheep Expo & Ram Sale at Katanning last week, but there were still buyers showing they were willing to invest in the top Poll Merino and Merino rams on offer.
With a bit more renewed confidence in the industry, following the significant increase in sheep prices over the past 12 months, the WA stud and commercial producers who purchased in the sale showed their confidence in the industry's future, pushing prices to a sale high $26,000 for a Barloo Poll Merino ram.
All up in the sale nine studs, two more than last year, presented 15 rams for sale under the Elders hammer and eight were sold for an average of $10,188.
In comparison, in last year's sale 11 rams sold from 12 offered at an average of $7045 and to a top of $13,500.
Elders stud stock manager Nathan King said despite the small number of rams offered, the quality presented by vendors was very good.
"Overall I think the prices we achieved in the sale for the rams which sold were solid," Mr King said.
"Commercially prices have turned a corner and there is more positivity, so hopefully moving forward it will give producers a reason to invest in their breeding programs.
"As a company, Elders would like to thank the vendors for their continued support in terms of offering rams in the sale to ensure it keeps going and the buyers who keep coming back and putting their hands up to buy WA genetics.
"WA has some of the best Merino genetics in Australia and this is shown in the results WA breeders achieve year-after-year at the Australian Sheep & Wool Show at Bendigo.
"I also had comments from Eastern States' visitors that not only would the offering of rams in the sale stand up against anything in the east, but the general quality of rams throughout the whole shed was very impressive.
"So this means there is a great opportunity for WA studs to invest in local genetics which are as good as anwyhwere in the country.
"An example of this is the top sale ram today - it did well at Bendigo this year and those who purchased it looked around at Bendigo and couldn't find anything that matched it in terms of its quality, which is real credit to our breeding programs.
"This ram sale is so important to the WA Merino industry to showcase what our peers across Australia recognise in terms of the quality of Merinos we are producing.
"So I would encourage both vendors and buyers to get behind the sale, so we can continue to grow it into something we can be proud of."
Barloo
After missing the sale last year, the House family's Barloo stud, Gnowangerup, was back in the thick of the action when it sold the top-priced ram.
Topping at $26,000 for the stud in lot eight was an upstanding, March shorn, Poll Merino ram (M60410), which had been sashed the junior champion ram and grand champion March shorn Poll Merino ram on the judging mat the day earlier.
The ram not only shone through on the show mat at Katanning, it also caught the judges' eyes at the Australian Sheep & Wool Show at Bendigo, Victoria, last month, where it was sashed the reserve grand champion March shorn medium wool ram and reserve champion March shorn medium wool Poll Merino ram.
When Elders auctioneer Jay Macdonald stood over the ram, which expressed excellent wool and carcase traits and took an opening bid of $20,000, a number of interested parties moved into place their bids and from there the price moved quickly upwards.
Finally at $26,000 there was only one bidder left in the race and the ram was knocked down to Elders stud stock manager Nathan King, who announced the ram was going to the Campbell family's Coromandel stud, Gairdner, with semen shares going to the Dawes family's Rutherglen stud, Yealering and the Rintoul family's Auburn Valley stud, Williams.
The white, stylish, medium woolled, double polled (PP) ram, is an ET-bred son of Willemenup Spartacus 30 sire and out of a Wallaloo Park 422 blood ewe.
The ram has wool figures of 21.3 micron, 3.1 SD, 14.6 CV, 99.2 per cent comfort factor.
Coromandel stud principal Michael Campbell, who will have full possession of the ram, said it was the first time Coromandel had purchased genetics from Barloo.
"We were looking for a ram that had a good combination of wool and carcase traits and this ram certainly ticked that box," Mr Campbell said.
"I had a look at Bendigo at what was on offer in the east and I just came back to this ram which Barloo took over there.
"He has a lot to offer as a sire and it is rare to find a ram with the combination of wool and carcase traits like he has.
"He has a great topline, is good through the twist, has a beautiful nature and a quality, white, long-stapled, free-growing wool.
"I also loved his breeding, his bloodline certainly appealed.
"We think he will slot into our breeding program extremely well and complement and build on what we are currently doing.
"We are confident in the future of the Merino industry in WA and believe it is going to have a very strong future."
Also happy to be able to secure a share in the ram were Rutherglen stud's Georgia Dawes and her brother-in-law Ben Hankinson.
Mr Hankinson believed the ram was the best all round sire in the shed.
"He has very few faults and is an uncomplicated sire," Mr Hankinson said.
"He has the perfect balance between wool and carcase.
"I saw him at the Narrogin Long Wool Day and liked him and my opinion from then to now hasn't changed, I think he is a very good ram which will add to the Rutherglen Poll stud.
"He will be an outcross for our Poll flock, so we are looking forward to seeing what he will breed."
Rounding out the buying partnership was Auburn Valley stud principals Peter and Jeffrey Rintoul, who were looking for a new bloodline for their Poll stud and Elders stud stock specialist Jeff Brown, suggested looking at this ram because of its excellent combination of carcase and wool traits.
Jeffrey Rintoul said the ram displayed the mix of carcase and wool traits needed in today's environment.
"He is an upstanding, long-bodied, young ram with a beautiful, bright, white, elite crimping wool," Mr Rintoul said.
"His breeding also appealed to us as we have used both Willemenup and Wallaloo Park genetics in our stud before with good success, so we think he will complement and add to our breeding program.
"We will use him over a few different bloodlines in our AI-program and we will be looking forward to seeing his progeny in 12 months time on the ground."
Along with selling the top-priced ram, the Barloo stud sold the second top-priced ram at $13,500, when its second ram (lot nine) was knocked down to the Panizza family's Old Aprelia stud, Southern Cross, which bid over the phone through Elders stud stock specialist Jeff Brown.
The solid-framed, white woolled ram is by East Mundalla Masterbuilt 89, which was purchased by the Barloo stud for $51,000 at the 2012 Rabobank WA Sheep & Ram Sale, and out of a Caesar 2555 ewe.
It was sold with wool test figures of 20.1 micron, 2.2 SD, 11.0 CV and 99.9pc CF.
Mr Brown said the Panizza family was looking for a new sire to add to its sire battery and he recommended this ram to them.
"They have had a similar bloodline in the past from Barloo and it has performed well, so they were pretty keen to get another ram of similar breeding," Mr Brown said.
"This ram has good make and shape for the Southern Cross area and plenty of good quality wool on him."
The final ram to be offered by Barloo was a March shorn, Poll Merino ram by Imperial and it sold at $7000 to Lassogowrie Farms Pty Ltd, Cranbrook.
The deep, stretchy ram, which was sashed the reserve champion March shorn fine-medium wool Poll Merino, had wool figures of 21.0 micron, 3.2 SD, 15.4 CV and 99.2pc CF.
All up Barloo offered and sold three rams at an average of $15,500, to be the only stud to achieve a 100pc clearance and sell multiple rams in the sale.
Angenup
The $10,000 third top price was paid for a classy March shorn Merino ram in pen two from the Norrish family's Angenup stud, Kojonup, which had been sashed the champion March shorn fine-medium wool Merino ram in the show ring the day earlier.
Securing the classy, well-built ram which carried a well-nourished, stylish, white wool was the Simmons family, The Glen stud, Jelcobine.
Buyer Keith Simmons said the family has been sourcing stud sires from the Angenup stud for more than 30 years.
He said they selected the ram for both its size and wool quality.
"He is a good sized, heavy cutting ram with a quality, even wool all over," Mr Simmons said.
The upstanding young ram is by Angenup 100, which was the supreme exhibit at the Rabobank WA Sheep Expo & Ram Sale in 2023 and was sold privately at the event for $35,000 to the Barloo stud and the North Cowie stud, Warooka, Yorke Peninsula, South Australia.
The ram had wool test figures of 19.3 micron, 2.7 SD, 15.6 CV and 99.2pc CF.
The Angenup stud also offered a March shorn Poll Merino ram in the sale, but unfortunately it was passed in when it failed to meet its reserve price.
East Mundalla
The Gooding and Robinson families, East Mundalla stud, Tarin Rock, were the first to offer in the sale and their single entry in pen one was a deep, stretchy, young March shorn Poll Merino ram.
Bidding kicked off at $5000 on the stylish, white woolled ram and eventually it was knocked down at $8000 to return buyers Graeme and Ryan Taylor, Krool Holdings, Kukerin, who are regular buyers of top-priced rams at East Mundalla's on-property ram sales.
The ram is from a syndicate mating of rams based on East Mundalla Masterbuilt 83 blood.
It has wool figures of 21.5 micron, 3.1 SD, 14.5 CV and 99.2pc CF.
Ryan Taylor said the ram came recommended to them by Elders stud stock manager Nathan King after he had been out classing their ewe hoggets.
"Nathan told us about him and sent us some pictures and after looking at them we decided to come into the sale and have a look," Mr Taylor said.
"When we saw him in the flesh he appealed for both his carcase and wool traits.
"He has great depth of body, a good frame and structure and a white, well-nourished wool and there is plenty of it.
"We are looking to improve the nourishment in our wools and he certainly has the nourishment we are looking for."
The Taylors will use the ram in their nucleus flock of 300 ewes to breed rams for their own use.
This year Mr Taylor said they were looking to join 2400 ewes to Poll Merino rams outside their nucleus flock and another 1400 Merino ewes to White Suffolk sires.
"Last year we increased the number of ewes we joined to Poll Merino rams as recognised there was going to be a shortage of Merinos and we aren't dropping it back this year," Mr Taylor said.
Quailerup West
The Mullan family's Quailerup West stud, Wickepin, offered a single March shorn Poll Merino ram in the catalogue and it found a new home when it was knocked down at $6000 to the Campbell family, Coromandel stud.
The long, deep-bodied ram, which carried a white, soft-handling wool, is a son of Navanvale 1515, which was purchased by the Mullan family purchased privately for $22,000 at the 2022 Rabobank WA Sheep Expo & Ram Sale.
The ram was sold with wool figures of 19.5 micron, 2.7 SD, 13.9 CV and 99.6pc CF.
Buyer Michael Campbell said they were chasing the ram for its bloodline.
"We have used semen from 1515 and he has done well for us, so we just wanted to get this ram to add to this bloodline in our stud and continue to develop the carcase traits it offers," Mr Campbell said.
"He is a well-balanced ram, with a lovely, soft muzzle and a soft, white wool.
"He is a good safe ram to build on the 1515 sire battery we have."
Wogerlin
The Bolt family's Wogerlin stud, Corrigin, offered two young, March shorn Poll Merino rams in the line-up and sold one for $6000.
Securing the Wogerlin ram to sell was client John Hewett, Chas Hewett & Co, Corrigin.
The ram is by a Wogerlin bred sire and has wool figures of 17.7 micron, 2.4 SD, 13.4 CV and 99.9pc CF.
Mr Hewett said he had been buying from Wogerlin stud principal Steven Bolt for a long time and liked the type of sheep he bred.
"This ram is a good sized ram, which is well put together," Mr Hewett said.
"He has a nice, plain front and a free-growing, white wool.
"He will fit well in with our current breeding program."
The ram will be used in the Hewett's nucleus flock where they join 200 ewes to breed rams for their own use.
In addition to their nucleus flock the Hewetts are looking at joining another 2700-2800 ewes to Poll Merino rams this year.
Despite the challenging times the industry has faced in the past couple of years Mr Hewett said they hadn't changed their joining numbers in any significant way.
"I am really positive about the future of the industry, I can't see anything but it being good in the years to come," he said.
Coromandel
Along with purchasing rams out of the catalogue, the Campbell family, Coromandel stud, Gairdner, also offered and sold a single March shorn Poll Merino ram.
The 2024-drop ram, which was a son of Navanvale 1515, was knocked down at $5000 to Elders stud stock manager Nathan King, who was carrying a buying order for the Blight family, Seymour Park stud, Highbury.
Mr King said the ram was well-structured, with good shape in its backend.
"He also has a quality, white, stylish wool to suit high rainfall areas, which is what the stud wants as it does sell a number of ram west of the Albany Highway."
Mr King said Seymour Park has a similar bloodline in the stud and this ram would be used as a back-up in the stud's AI-program.
The ram carried wool figures of 15.9 micron, 2.7 SD, 16.8 CV and 99.7pc CF.
